Connecticut's Lorin Dixon, right, is greeted by fan John DeGennaro of Oxford, Conn., during a rally for the NCAA champion women's basketball team at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn., Wednesday.

WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. — A crowd greeted the champs at the airport and another waited inside the home arena of a UConn women's basketball team that hasn't lost a game in more than two years.

But this was no delirious victory rally — 90 percent of the seats were empty.

UConn officials estimated about 1,000 fans were inside Gampel Pavilion Wednesday to celebrate with the Huskies a day after UConn defeated Stanford for its 78th straight win and back-to-back national championships.

In an arena that seats just under 10,200, the atmosphere was less than electric.

"It was so disheartening," said Dawn Riquier-Shayer, who arrived two hours before the rally. "It upset me that there were so few people here. Almost embarrassing. I think No. 1, the students don't support it and it's really disheartening. I think the other thing with a lot of the fans, I think they're taking (the team) for granted."

The celebration drew more fans to Gampel than the game itself. Only about 650 people watched the game being televised from San Antonio.

"I was kind of surprised because I came last year and I think it seemed a little bit more full," said Sam Simons, 19, a sophomore. "I think people feel sometimes they don't even have to watch the women's games because they already know what's going to happen, but this was the national championship."

There were no bonfires or impromptu parades on campus Tuesday night after the game, in which UConn rallied from a horrible first half to win, 53-47.

Is UConn's dominance — seven national titles since 1995 — causing even the Huskies' fans to lose interest?

"I think it's decreased over the years with these championships," said Mary Duprey of Tolland, Conn. "Maybe it's complacency."

Joan Schulte from Prospect, Conn., wasn't going to miss the victory rally, but found the low attendance disappointing.

"I think that's very sad," Schulte said. "I think these girls and the coach put a lot of hard work into it. They make it look easy. They've accomplished things that no other teams have accomplished, and they deserve all the praise and encouragement that they could get."

At the airport, even coach Geno Auriemma joked about the size of the crowd — about 175 fans waiting in summerlike heat for the Huskies' plane to land.

"I know there would be a lot more people but they're probably hospitalized," Auriemma said, referring to UConn's rally after the Huskies scored only 12 points in the first half. "So if you see any of your friends, tell them we won."